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Heal the World | Andre Gooden | TEDxUCCI


you

I would like to refer to this message

and my journey in comparison with a

you have the stars in the universe and

throughout their lifetime they gather

particles different material and

information that make them what they are

and the coma point in time in their life

where they die but in that death in that

destruction it’s not the end for them to

me it’s actually the beginning because

they then explode and they release that

information in those particles back into

the universe to make it possible for a

million more stars to be formed and for

me that was the perfect way to explain

my life I think we as people we where

like the stars where it’s so easy for us

to show the beauty that we possess on

the surface but there’s something deeper

going on inside of us that is a little

more complicated a little more difficult

to explain so for me it looked good on

the surface I had a good job I was

making good money I built my first house

when I was 21 years old so on the

surface the average person it looked

like everything was alright with me but

there was something deeper going on

inside where I still had a lot of

questions for myself whether or not I

was satisfied with me and that curiosity

that concern grew more and more every

day but I couldn’t answer it and there

were moments where I would be at staff

events parties you know where I’m

supposed to be enjoying myself but I

always find these moments to just zone

out in my mind and trying to figure

things out and this was this picture was

one of the

was moments where I’m supposed to be

okay here having fun but there’s so much

going on in my head I just can’t enjoy

myself as much anymore and that

continued to grow to the point where I

don’t have the answers so I want to try

and ignore this so I started to drink a

lot I would drink every single day of my

life

to the point where I would wake up in

the mornings and I couldn’t tell if I

was sober intoxicated from the neighbor

before it was so it was so constant and

I would just continue to do that it was

in affecting my work at the time so

still to the public they couldn’t really

see what was going on with me but this

feeling continued to grow regardless of

me trying to ignore it this way this

concern was still growing and a dumb

woman I decided I need to figure out you

know some other way to to answer this

question I don’t know if is it this job

that I mean is do I need to like start

over though what do I need to do because

this is not helping

so I decided at that point in time that

I’m gonna leave my position I was an

engineer at the time I was not a company

for seven years

and I decided I’m gonna leave this

position I gonna wipe my slate clean I

gonna start over I don’t have that

answer yet but I gonna start over I

gonna figure it out and I resigned from

my position I had someone is saved so I

could manage the bills a bit till I

figured out myself so I was still

drinking you know I have more time now

to abuse this Hobbit and know my family

and my friends they start to get a

little more concerned about me because

they could see instances before where I

was in this state but no it was more

frequent and no I don’t have a job I

have bills still but I don’t have a job

so you know they’re putting this

additional pressure on you know trying

to help me figure this out

so I start to push everybody away and

then when everybody gives me that space

now I start to feel alone because now I

don’t have anybody but I decided to

build on that isolation that I created

and I decided I don’t want to be in my

house as much anymore so I would every

night I would drive to the beach and I

were just stargaze I would have my

alcohol but I would just stargaze

because I felt like at that point my

answers would come from above my answers

would come some way I don’t know how but

if I keep my head up you know maybe the

answers would just come to me but then

one night that caught up to me as well I

was driving home fell asleep behind the

wheel and I got into an accident no

fortunately nobody was injured I was an

injured but a dull moment I know I need

to I need to fix this situation I know

how a criminal charge to face with the

police this car doesn’t belong to me I

borrowed this from a friend so no I have

to answer to them I still have all this

other stuff going on but I have this new

problem

there were many incidents before this

that happened that I should have you

know figured it out then but they

weren’t convincing enough but at this

point in time I knew I have to figure

don’t know so that passe I dealt with

the situation with the police and

everything and I’m at home now

trying to figure it out I don’t know

what go hopping and a friend of mine

came by one day and said you know what

you can doing it I don’t know you say

well you you select a plant and you

suffer that way you don’t make that yeah

you know consume your time so at the

time when I was in my previous job I

would find little moments and I would

plant stuff in the yard I just were

fascinated with the idea of things

growing and you know just I just used to

love that so I said Aria I mean see that

helps see if I can escape that way

so I decided I was gonna build a

greenhouse in my backyard

so I started to prepare the line but at

this point I have no idea how to bill

agree knows I have no carpentry

experience I don’t know anything about

getting this job done but I need to I

need to take the first step because

nothing else is working at this point in

time so I started to prepare the space

that I was going to use the business

greenhouse and I went to the local

hardware store and I bought the material

that I needed to start and it’s all

guessing at this point I’m gonna figure

it out somehow maybe about six or seven

days it took for me to build it and I

was about three years ago it’s still

standing so I think I did a good job so

that was the beginning and then at the

time I wasn’t when I used to like the

plant

it wasn’t necessarily food it was more

flowers and stuff I was more concerned

about like what is they had probably

plant some sunflowers give to my the

ladies and my family and stuff like that

because I figured that was easier to do

then grow food I dabbled a bit in some

food but not as heavy so I started to

plant and at that point I wanted to

start to share that experience as well

so I created a social media page you

know surrounding this new farmer

personality that I had and I would I

want to share that with people because

at this point you know I got a little

bit heavy-handed so I planted more than

I could manage so I decided to take to

social media and just ask a few people

if they would be interested in you know

getting some plants or buying some and I

got good feedback from people you know

they were very interested in what I was

doing and at the same time I was also

sharing personal information you know

just explaining to people you know I

I’m going through a few things this is

how I’m dealing with it I’m trying to

fix myself so I tried to build a

relationship with people as well and

then I started to get some requests you

know did you think about growing

vegetables or anything like that and I

didn’t have it in mind but I got those

requests more often no so I said okay

well I’m I’ll take a chance I’ll grow

some stuff so I started to grow more of

the the easier crops that I could manage

at the time I had different veg going

and then again I got a bit heavy-handed

and I ran out of space No

so here I have this greenhouse it’s it’s

full – you know capacity I need more

space so I decided no to top into the

carpenter scale a little bit more and I

want to expand a bit so I start I got a

I got some scrap material from a friend

and I started constructing some raised

boxes raised beds in my yard space you

know fill in my yard space completely

with these additional places for

planting at that point I was I’m still

sharing all of this on the media you

know going showing this experience and a

friend of mine she came by one day

because she saw what I was doing and she

said to me you know would I be

interested in going into schools and

talking to students about the growing

you know the carpentry stuff no I’m

trying to fix myself so I don’t think I

have the capability now to go and talk

to students and educate them but at the

same time I’m also saying I need to take

this chance because maybe that’s the

next step for me is to offer this

experience to someone else but I don’t

know what how I gonna do it so I go

figure it out click you’re not working

okay

so we go into the school and it’s the

best experience that I have a heart in

my life you have these innocent souls

these children that they’re not

concerned with my past they’re not

concerned with why I’m even that D

they’re just concerned about what I’m

what am I going to talk about why am I

here so if I can give them the best part

of me something that will help them in

the future then I think I would have

done my job and it was like I said it

was the best experience I have a heart

you know just working these these

students and from there I shared that on

social media as well and I started to

get feedback from other schools

interested in me working with their

students and you know doing something

similar getting a little bit nervous no

because know I have this service that I

never intended to offer no I’m

everybody’s one in that part of me but I

take the challenge anyway I go to the

schools I talk with them and add a

moment I decided I wanted to to shift my

focus now I realized that it was

important for me to hear myself but I

think that’s a journey that I’m still

gonna be on in a year in a few years to

come but here these children you know

they need this opportunity for someone

to come and share with them what I feel

is some of the most important things and

life growing your own food you know be

more conscious about your health you

know what spiritual movement and and

physically but I just want to share with

them how I feel why I did it and get

them not to meet the mistakes I made

with with farming that’s how I intended

to achieve that so I’m working with

these students in different schools and

around that same time a friend of mine

that we went we went to school together

and we would like each other post on

social media we would just comment about

me

one day we should meet up in

exchange plants either whatever and we

met one day and he said to me you know I

have some I have some property that you

know if you were interested we could use

it together and maybe do something on a

bigger scale at that time I needed the

space too because I can’t even walk in

my yard anymore in his boxes everywhere

plants everywhere so I said sure like

you know less let’s do this and

immediately I think about two years ago

no we went to the property we started

developing it you know building places

that we could store plants we started

growing immediately but a damn moment I

knew that was my dynastar moment because

I think the whole journey before that

was me collecting this information I

needed the materials I needed the

experience I needed to know expanding

become more than I ever was and this new

property no would the focus would be

mainly on that was we’re gonna use this

property we’re gonna grow like we did

before but no the the focus should be on

providing for people just as much as we

provide for ourselves with information

with food just a different idea on a

life stab because I feel that was like I

felt like that was a gap that was

getting a lot bigger here my generation

and the ones before us we saw a lot more

of this in the community or we saw a lot

more in general but there’s no

generation they’re not seeing it as much

so I think now this is the opportunity

that we need to we need to bridge this

gap so that became the main focus of

this new property was providing for the

public as much as we provide for

why would see is so how can I say it

doesn’t have to be as dramatic as my

beginning I don’t think it has to be for

anybody to to get to this point you know

some people are ready on this journey

but for those who aren’t on this journey

as yet I think it’s just important to

recognize that Danes are a moment in

your life where you’ve gotten all of

this information you’ve gotten all of

this experience and know that you were

exploded onto the scene you know once

you recognize that moment will you be

satisfied with just using it and healing

yourself with it or would you want to

heal the world with it

lessons thank you

[Applause] you

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